Mark Baratelli of thedailycity.com hosted the 5th Taco Truck Taste Test near Tacos Del Rio (9785 South Orange Blossom Trail). As Terry and I drove down OBT it started to pour. We had the usual difficulty in trying to see any numbers on the strip malls, dealerships and the bright riot of signage. We found one building number that was close and pulled into the parking lot. We then hop scotched up one parking lot at a time until we found a lot filled with a whole bunch of taco trucks. Thankfully the rain subsided. As we walked up to this truck we found a small crowd gathered and Mark was there holding a corrugated cardboard sign with The Daily City written in black Sharpe. Mark had asked a friend to work as an interpreter and the whole group started walking from truck to truck with the interpreter explaining the menu items.
I stayed behind at the first truck to finish my sketch. Several times Brian Feldman breezed by to fire a joke my way and then he was off again. Terry let me know that a group of people were going to go into the brick and mortar Tacos Del Rio so they could sit down. When I finished my sketch I went in to join them. Matt, Amanda, Terry and Mark were sitting in a booth at the back of the restaurant. There was an empty seat so I joined them. Terry was still finishing her meal. I tried to sneak a bite but she wouldn’t stand for it.
I decided to get a few tacos myself. The line was short but when I got to the counter to order the guy shouted that he had to go to another building. He disappeared out the back door. A group of us waited for like 20 minutes. I should have gone out to the taco truck but I had already committed so much time to this line. The food wasn’t that great. The meat was bland and they were running out of every topping. When I was eating Terry suggested I get some sour cream. When I got up to get it she snatched one of my tacos and tried to devour it. Amanda’s loud laughter gave Terry away and I caught her red handed.
Later Mark Baratelli started video taping Sultana describing the finer points of marketing an Improv Festival. Matt, who was sitting behind Sultana started flexing his biceps theatrically for the duration of the interview. Amanda who was sitting behind Matt was leaning forward in embarrassment, trying to hid her face as if she didn’t know Matt. Of course Sultana couldn’t see what was going on behind her, and Mark behind the camera didn’t notice. It wasn’t until he played back the video that he noticed the hilarious background action. I laughed harder than I have in a long time.
The proprietors of Del Rio must have thought we were having too much fun, because they turned on the flat screen TV above out heads and blasted the audio of the cheesy Spanish soap opera. We left soon after.
Copper Rocket
The Copper Rocket Pub (106 Lake Avenue) held a fundraiser for the Mustard Seed Foundation. The Mustard Seed provides furniture and clothing to families is need in the Central Florida area. When I got to the Copper Rocket, I found the parking lot full of tents for food and merchandise. Finding a parking spot was a real challenge but I finally found a sweet spot on a grass lawn. I met Terry and the first order of business was getting some food. We sat down of a curb to eat. Behind us two women were dresses a hula girls with leis and grass skirts. I was torn between wanting to sketch and finishing my meal. My stomach won. There must have been costume contests inside because other woman were dressed as 1940’s bombshells. How is it that those fashions ever went out of style?
When we finished dinner, Terry gave me the freedom to find a spot to draw. Rather than focus on the constantly milling crowd, I decided to sketch this van covered in graffiti by Black Chapel Tattoo parlor. The sun was setting so I worked fast. A bunch of motorcycles were also parked in this area and occasionally men would come over and examine the sleek lines of these slick machines. A very drunk woman approached me from behind and demanded to know what I was doing. Slurring her words, she said, “Hey thass not bad.” She then tromped off to the bar talking to a friend on her cell phone. She approached me three more times as I worked.
AS I was finishing up the sketch, Terry came over and sat on the running board of a hot red 1940’s pickup truck. Dina Peterson came over and joined her. They had a long discussion about buying food locally and the finer points of being a vegetarian. Vendors started striking their tents. A bombshell and her man started loading stuff into the Black Chapel van. When I finished, Terry decided she was tired so we headed home. From Dina I found out there had been costume contests in the pub. Oh well, I will have to catch that action next year.
WLOQ Radio Interview.
Amanda Chadwick asked me if I would like to sketch a radio interview as she promoted The Children’s Home Society of Florida on the radio. Amanda was a bit nervous anout the interview and she had just finished a gruiling morning moving hundreds of boxes and backpacks from a storage unit to the business park where the Children’s Home Society resides. Amanda had to do a quick change of clothes and freshen up a bit before heading to the station. As we drove there in her Toyota Carola, I asked her questions from a sheet of questions she had prepared and sent to the talk show host. As times she let go of the steering wheel and looked through her notes to get the right statistics. I grabbed the wheel to keep the car on the road. My nerves were starting to get shot.
Robyn Austin the Morning Show Co-Host, on Smooth Jazz 103.1 WLOQ, introduced herself to us in the lobby. As we walked back to the recording studio she said she would have to check with the station manager to see if it was alright for me to sketch. I am used to being turned down any time I specifically ask to do a sketch so my stomach tightened in anticipation. She came back beaming and told us it would be fine. For all of her nervousness, Amanda performed like a pro when she was in front of the microphone. She was at ease and managed to tell several stories which illuminated the work of the Children’s Home Society on a human level.
The Society will be handing out close to 900 backpacks this year to needy school children in the Central Florida area. Amanda told the story of noticing a little girl that was wearing one of the backpacks in the previous years style. The backpack was to large for the little girl so she knew the mom had not picked it out in a store. This bought her work right into her own front yard. The work the organization was doing affects children in all neighborhoods through out the area. Imagine trying to do your job without the necessary tools. Many children have to face this dilema every day as their parents have to choose between putting food on the table of getting school supplies.
The Art of the Thriller
Thriller novelist Jamie Freveletti visited the Cagan Crossings Library in Clermont. Her first book “Running from the Devil” was nominated as the best first novel by the International Thriller Writers Association. When I entered the small room, she was talking about research she had done for her second book “Running Dark”. This novel is about a cruise ship which is invaded by Somali pirates. To research the book she wanted to talk to cruise directors but they wanted nothing to do with a book about piracy. They said it would be bad for business and she shouldn’t write the book. She finally got to talk to a cruise ship captain who was helpful. When she shopped the book around to publishers no one was interested until pirates made the news off the coast of Africa. Suddenly everyone was interested and she landed her deal with Harper Collins.
Jamie and her husband are both long distance runners. When she said she was planning to go to Somalia for research, he said “You can’t leave me alone with the kids for that long, I am coming with you.” She pointed out that she has always been a woman in a mans world. Her first career as a lawyer toughened her to this reality and now she is one of very few women thriller writers. She is shocked by the stellar success that her books have seen. She got a six figure advance for her most recent book. When asked if she uses an outline to plan her book, she said that she would like the reader to feel the same excitement as she does as she discovers what is going to happen next. Although she has some idea what her protagonist will do, she has no idea how the book will end. She almost excitedly started to tell us what might happen next in the book she is now writing but she held herself in check. Her enthusiasm was contagious.
She offered some advice to aspiring young writers about which publishers to approach when starting out. In all there were maybe 15 people in the small room listening to this talented writer but she was as engaging and excited as if she was addressing a crowd. She is humbles and excited by the success she has worked so hard for. After the talk she signed a few books. I was surprised to find her relaxing in a chair with now one standing around her asking questions. I asked her to sign my sketch.
House Warming
For the past month artist Doug Rhodehamel has been living in a cardboard box which he sets up in peoples homes so they might have a “Artist in Residence “. Six different Orlando residents opened their homes and allowed Doug to set up his makeshift home. Doug always wanted to build his own home and he finally did so on a somewhat small scale. What did this artist in residence do? He made art! He constructed little cardboard bewilderbeasts for the homes. He just needed a spot in the house to set up his 6′ x 3′ home. The home can be folded up and transported to the next residence in his car.
On July 21st Doug set up his home on the red stage at Stardust Video and Coffee. When I got to Stardust I found a seat at a table up near the stage and then wandered off to find a beer. Carl Knickerbocker, a painter of primitive folk art, was also looking for a beer. He was studying the many bottles and I chose to go for what was on tap. We discussed our tastes in beer and found some common ground.
The sketch was a challenge since the place people tended to congregate and stand was right in my line of sight. It took nerves of steel and much patience to sketch areas I could see when I was blocked. On the loudspeakers, piano music from the Charlie Brown cartoons was playing setting a playful mood. So many beautiful people kept walking in to see. Doug would offer guided tours to select VIPs and they would crawl inside. I never went inside up I did take a look to see how the walls were decorated. A black hairy spider was perched on the roof above the entry and horse photos were galloping above the door. Window boxes held paper flowers and a small donate box was stationed near the entry.
From Dust to Life
I went to an art opening titled, “From Dust to Life” which featured the work of Jason Lee. The art was hung in the Peacock Room (1312 North Mills Avenue). The work will stay on display through August 15th. The Arts Hub and the Peacock Room sponsored the event. When I entered the bar, I immediately looked at all the paintings on the wall and then found myself a seat at the end of the bar so I could get an overall view of the room and bar patrons. Toni Taylor was seated right next to me on my left and next to her was, Jen Jacobson, a friend and fellow artist who has turned to Tony for painting advice. That is right just like in renaissance days, this artist has asked Toni to take her under her wing and share her working secrets. Together they are working on a huge 5 foot high canvas that will be on display at Tu Tu Tango’s on July 30th.
On the ceiling of the bar Doug Rhodehamel had perhaps a hundred brown paper bag mushrooms suspended upside down. On the far wall of the bar an Andrew Spear mural was staring straight at me. I started my drawing by focusing on that beautiful face. All the perspective lines point straight at her. Toni’s apprentice took an interest in my sketch so she sat next to me and watched for a while. I discovered she works at the Animal Kingdom training the birds that are in the shows. We talked parrots for a while, since I have a pet cockatoo. She lost interest and then she and Tony started talking girl talk.
Carl Knickerbocker, an amazing local artist is in the left hand side of the sketch. He noticed me sketching and came over to see my progress. I asked him about the idea of sketching him at work on one of his larger pieces. He agreed so I might visit his studio soon. Brad Briggs who helped organize the evening came over to say hi, he was with his partner Linda Brandt. I had sketched Linda as she worked with her pet dog, Otis, at Hip Dog Hydrotherapy. Brad checked back a few times and I felt he might be impatient with my slow progress. A group of artists stood behind me talking about various shows. Part of me felt I should be socializing more myself. I honestly know little about the Orlando Arts scene but I figure if I just keep doing my sketch a day, the rest will work itself out in time.
Boudoir Bombshells Calender Shoot
Kristen Wheeler invited me to a photo shoot for a Boudoir Bombshell calender. The shoot took place in Clermont which is way out on the west side of Orlando. Driving on 50 heading west there is still quite a bit of undeveloped land. Clermont is a quaint little old Florida town. the shoot took place in a small storefront business called Thyme of Day which offers yoga classes. When I knocked on the door, a boxer dog barked a few times and started spinning around in a circle. Kristen welcomed me and introduced me to an author who was at the shoot as research for a character in her book titled 3 Flavors. A character in that book is loosely based on her observations of Kristen. None of the models had arrived yet and Kristen was just starting to set up her backdrop. She suggested I get lunch at Cheeser’s Palace across the street and after hearing her descriptions of some of the menu items I decided that was a great idea.
While waiting for my order to arrive, Marcie, an actress I had met before at the Fringe walked in and ordered the 5 cheese grilled sandwich. She had just gotten back from Alaska and we chatted for a while about sea otters and the unspoiled beauty of the Alaska wilderness. Marcie was the first model to show up for the shoot and she got her sandwich to go. When I got back to the photo studio more models had arrived and they were sorting garter belts , nylons and staring to apply makeup. Brooke had been assigned the task of blowing up as many red white and blue balloons as she could. In the back room of the studio the women began to get into their costumes. Timarie, or T, began to began to work on Marcie’s hair. She used her curling iron to help establish the 1940’s look she was after. When Marcie saw the final results in a mirror she was delighted.
The first model to be shot was Chloe. She had never done a Boudoir photo shoot before so Kristen walked her through a quick introductory course. Kristen said, “Now say your vowels but enunciate and exaggerate how you use your lips, A E I O U.” The pursing of the lips on U made for a sultry Marilyn Monroe look and everyone laughed. Kristen had taken a number of shots of Cloe before Roz stepped in and asked Chloe if it was OK for her to remove her glasses.She pointed out that Chloe had beautiful eyes and they wanted to see them. Chloe was fine with that and the shoot continued. She then lay down on the floor and Kristen shot her from above. She held her legs in the air and announced, “O” for Kristen. Rosalind said, “Now push the girls together.” Chloe adjusted her bra with the desired effect. She said, “I have never been complimented so many times in one day.” It is true that she was told she was beautiful and a natural so many times it is hard to count. Dizzi, the boxer, is a bit of a ham and whenever she was let in the photo shoot room she would spin around and then find a spot where she was sure to be photographed or sketched.
Next up was Marcie who was dressed in a cute tight fitting sailors outfit. She was to represent July 4th and she stood in a sea of balloons. During her shoot all the other girls grabbed as many balloons as they could and they threw then up in the air letting them rain down on Marcie while the shutter clicked away. Dizzi, the boxer, was having a fit spinning in a tight circle and barking her head off. This was more excitement than any dog should be expected to handle. Marci is a pro and she knew how to play up the coy looks and come hither gazes. Whenever she would raise her left eyebrow, it bought about a round of laughter from everyone. The white backdrop behind Marcie will be replaced by an American flag for the calender.
Getting to sit in on a Boudoir photo shoot was very fun and there were so many other sketching opportunities. In late October or early November there will be a calender release party. I will keep you posted.
Project F Projections
At the last minute on a Sunday I got a Text Message saying I should come out to a Project F rehearsal because something new was in the works. I jumped in my car and drove way out to Bithlo where several actors, Ryan Price and Aradhana Tiwari were gathered. When I entered there was chocolate cake and red wine on the table. Aradhana’s lovebird was flying about the place perching on peoples shoulders on occasion to say hello. I got myself some cake and opted to get a coke instead of a wine. From the dining room table where everyone was seated I could see a blue glow coming from the next room. Aradhana disappeared into that room and I heard her talking to Ryan. I grabbed my cake, soda and then a pillow I found in the hallway and went into the empty room. A digital projector was set up along with a laptop computer. Ryan had set up a cool way of projecting video where the actors image is sent through filters and processors which distort and create halo effects.
Becky Rankin was the first actress to try out the new imaging effect. She sat in front of the computer and acted like she was typing. The video effects distorted her image making intriguing imagery. Whenever she would move the negative space she had just occupied showed a Facebook page in a stuttered digital effect which resembled stop motion animation. Soon Ryan and Aradhana were experimenting with different ways to alter the imagery by waving such items as gauze clear plastics and the ultimate find an old doily. These items when waved in front of the camera lens would set a color tone over the image and add intriguing patterns and distortions. Whe the recorded video was played back on the wall, everyone would whisper, “Ooooh, Ahhhh!”. Just as if they were watching fireworks. The process was fun experimental and fully interactive.
Soon Aradhana had the actors waking in front of the projector creating a viewpointing session like no other where the final result made the actors look like they were surrounded by a blue halo. If an actor stopped moving they would disappear from view and then they would reappear when they moved again. The final effect was ghostly and mesmerizing to watch.
Another filter was tried which pixelated the actors image to the point of barely being recognizable. Again Becky was the first to try out the technology. She sat and acted as if she were working at her computer screen. Ryan and I experimented with lighting and settled on using the projector lighting up the wall as a light source that he then kept moving to alter the image. What was really nice about these images is the fact that the Facebook blue was the primary color in the scene. It was a joy to be a part of this playful afternoon of play and discovery. The actors were giddy with delight when they saw the unexpected final video results. Chelsea Anderson had to use the bathroom. When she returned the light from the open bathroom door created an amazingly clear image on the computer screen. Aradhana asked her to enter the room again leaving the door open when she did. She then sat down at the computer screen and a fabulous scene was created all because of a chance combination of factors that bought the image to life. Such moments of pure serendipity are a spark of pure genius because everyone was open and ready for any new discovery. Project F is truly a cutting edge production.
Tomorrow Thor will sketch DRIP musician auditions at 4502 Old Winter Garden Road Suite E2 between 10AM and 10PM.
The Manteis Project
In the red room at Taste (717 Smith Street, College Park), Terry and I stayed to watch the music act that was setting up on stage after most of the artists had left from an event called Blend. The heart of the group seemed to be an Apple laptop computer which put out vibrant pulsating sound effects. There was a sitar, guitar an a wide variety of drums. A keyboardist also had a laptop open above his keyboard. They were known as the Manteis Project. Behind the group the screen displayed animated lighting patterns. The music was mesmerizing.
Kenneth Raduazzo was working the sound booth. I glanced up at the sound booth and his wife Teresa was there with him. She had recently introduced me to an ashram. A couple of artists were still working on the collaborative paintings in the room behind us. I was seated in a chair right at the foot of the stage looking up at the performers. After the performance was over, Terry and I walked back to the car and on the way we bumped into Teresa. She had decided to go for a walk to get some fresh air. I thought she and Terry must have met before at the Kerouac House but I made the introductions anyway. We talked for a while but then Teresa had to get back inside to help break down.
Tomorrow Thor will sketch an Acrylic painting demonstration at Sam Flax on Colonial Drive near Mills between 3:30PM and 5:30PM.
First Fridays
The Baldwin Park Sidewalk art festivals were canceled, but organizer Brad Biggs immediately followed up with a similar event each First Friday of each month in the Lake Ivanhoe antiques district (Orange Avenue between New Hampshire and Princeton). I had to go to the first of these sidewalk art shows. There was an assortment of artists set up in front of all the businesses in the neighborhood. Terry and I walked the whole show to see everything. Karen Cali, had a table set up with prints of many of her figurative drawings. She sat in a lawn chair and was busy blocking in a sketch documenting the First Friday event. Brad had offered me a spot where I could display my work but I only had the sketchbook that I was planning to use. I might decide to display my work her on some first Friday.
My wandering eye finally settled on this band that had just started to set up. I set out my camping chair and leaned back against a telephone pole. The group’s name is Chopper Stepe and I was happy to have this front row seat. Terry set up her lawn chair beside me and played with her iPhone. The group played an assorted mix of cover songs and original material. They had a seasoned feel and they relaxed right into the music.
I dashed off the sketch fairly quickly and just as I was finishing up adding watercolor washed, the group took a break. Terry and I walked the rounds one more time and said goodbye to Karen across the street before we hiked back to my truck.
Tomorrow Thor will sketch the Taco Truck Tast Test at Del Rio 9785 South Orange Blossom Trail between 9PM and 10PM.